Lebanon
Latest stories
Cabinet Expected to Meet Next Week as Salam Seeks to Resolve Disputes

Prime Minister Tammam Salam is expected to call for a cabinet session next week if his consultations with the factions represented in the government led to a deal on the mechanism they would adopt to exercise full executive powers, officials said.

The officials, who are close to Salam, told al-Mustaqbal newspaper published on Thursday that a session was not held this week because of lack of agreement on the mechanism and the PM's planned trip to Kuwait over the weekend.

W140 Full Story
Franjieh: No President Can be Elected without Assad Consent

Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh on Wednesday announced that any candidate must enjoy Syrian President Bashar Assad's approval to be elected a president in Lebanon, noting that the embattled Syrian leader would be “pleased” if Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun manages to reach the Baabda Palace.

“No president can be elected in Lebanon without Bashar Assad's consent,” Franjieh underlined during an interview with NBN television.

W140 Full Story
Syrian Worker Killed, 3 Injured in Ashrafieh Building Wall Collapse

One person was killed and three others were wounded on Wednesday afternoon when the wall of an old building collapsed in the Beirut region of Ashrafieh.

Internal Security Forces announced on its account on the social media website Twitter that the wall of an old building collapsed on four Syrian workers during the demolition of the structure.

W140 Full Story
Ongoing Dispute over VAT Hindering Agreement over Wage Scale

Resolving the dispute over raising the Value Added Tax is among the main obstacles that may hinder the approval of the new wage scale during a legislative session scheduled for Thursday.

Given the lingering differences, the session may not even be attended by the Mustaqbal bloc, which may lead to a lack of quorum at parliament.

W140 Full Story
March 14 Slams 'All Extremist Movements', Including 'ISIL, Hizbullah'

The March 14 forces on Wednesday voiced their rejection of “all extremist movements,” reiterating the call for “building the state and the immediate election of a new president.”

“Today, more than ever, the (March 14) general secretariat announces its rejection of all extremist groups, whether they resemble Hizbullah or the ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant),” the secretariat said in a statement issued after its weekly meeting in Ashrafieh.

W140 Full Story
Geagea Slams Aoun Pledge to Guarantee Security of Hariri if in Power

Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea said on Wednesday that his political arch-foe Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun isn't responsible for head of al-Mustaqbal Movement Saad Hariri's security, stressing that staging the parliamentary elections amid presidential vacuum is a dangerous precedent.

“It is early to discuss the legislative polls... But if we carry out the elections without a head of state then we will return to the same crisis,” Geagea told reporters at Maarab after lawmakers failed for the seventh time to elect a new president.

W140 Full Story
STL Resumes Trial of Accused in Hariri Assassination

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon resumed on Wednesday the trial in the Ayyash et al. case tackling the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

The trial at the Hague kicked off with Registrar Daryl Mundis confirming that none of the five accused came forward to appear before the trial.

W140 Full Story
Prolonged Vacuum as MPs Fail Again to Elect New President

Lawmakers failed on Wednesday for the seventh time to elect a new president as differences between the rival parties seemed not to be abating.

Speaker Nabih Berri postponed the session to July 2 to fill the seat of the country's top Christian post at Baabda Palace.

W140 Full Story
Army Continues Security Campaign on Syrian Encampments in Arsal

An army commando force raided on Wednesday Syrian refugees encampments in the northeastern border town of Arsal, the state-run National News Agency reported.

NNA said that the army also carried out patrols on the outskirts of Arsal in search for gunmen and wanted suspects.

W140 Full Story
Senator Says U.S. Must Help Lebanon over Refugee Crisis

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has said the U.S. must spend money to help Lebanon confront the Syrian refugee crisis as the U.S. Senate appropriators advanced a $48.3 billion budget for foreign aid and State Department work.

The Appropriations foreign operations subcommittee adopted the budget by consensus Tuesday. The full committee examines it Thursday.

W140 Full Story